Hitman 2

The pairing of the Intel Core i5-12400 with the AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT produces a distinctive performance profile in Hitman 2, one that shifts from GPU-bound at high resolutions to increasingly CPU-sensitive at 1080p. The measured data reveals a system that is highly capable at mainstream resolutions, yet struggles to maintain fluid frame rates when pushed to 4K with maximum detail settings. This analysis examines the specific FPS measurements, component roles, and scaling behavior to determine where this combo excels and where its limitations become apparent.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo to maintain a 60 FPS average in Hitman 2?

A: The data shows that 2560x1440 with High settings achieves a 60.4 FPS average, making it the highest resolution and settings combination that clears the 60 FPS threshold. At 1920x1080, even Ultra settings reach 74.9 FPS, while 3840x2160 only manages 36.9 FPS on High.

Q: How does the Ultra preset perform across different resolutions?

A: Ultra settings produce 74.9 FPS at 1920x1080, 49.2 FPS at 2560x1440, and 24.9 FPS at 3840x2160. The drop from 1080p to 1440p represents a reduction of 25.7 FPS, while the further drop to 4K cuts performance by another 24.3 FPS.

Q: What is the frame rate difference between Low and Ultra settings at 1080p?

A: At 1920x1080, Low settings yield 176.5 FPS average, while Ultra settings yield 74.9 FPS. This is a difference of 101.6 FPS, indicating that the graphics preset has a substantial impact on performance at this resolution.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU becomes a more significant factor at lower resolutions. At 1920x1080, the frame rate reaches 176.5 FPS on Low, which is exceptionally high, but the scaling from Low to Ultra (a 101.6 FPS drop) indicates the GPU is still heavily utilized. The CPU's 6 cores and 12 threads, with a boost clock of 4.40 GHz, are sufficient to feed the GPU at these rates.

Q: Does the combo achieve 60 FPS at 4K with any settings preset?

A: No. At 3840x2160, the highest average FPS recorded is 56.9 on Low settings. Medium settings drop to 48.1 FPS, and High falls to 36.9 FPS. The best option for 4K is Low settings, which still falls short of the 60 FPS target.

Q: How does this combo rank among all tested combinations for Hitman 2?

A: The combo ranks 999th out of 1795 tested combinations. This places it in the middle of the field, suggesting that while it delivers playable performance at many settings, it is not an exceptional pairing for this specific title when compared to the broader database of tested hardware.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 6700 XT is the primary driver of visual fidelity in this pairing, and its specifications directly explain the measured FPS patterns. With 12 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 192-bit bus, the card provides 384.0 GB/s of bandwidth, which is ample for Hitman 2's detailed environments at 1080p and 1440p. The GPU's base clock of 2321 MHz and boost clock of 2581 MHz, with a game clock of 2424 MHz, allow it to sustain high throughput across varied scenes. The 2560 shading units and 160 texture mapping units process the game's geometry and textures efficiently, as evidenced by the 176.5 FPS average at Low settings in 1080p.

The data reveals a clear GPU-bound scenario at higher resolutions. At 3840x2160, the frame rate drops from 56.9 FPS on Low to 24.9 FPS on Ultra, a reduction of 32.0 FPS. This steep decline indicates that the GPU's compute resources, rated at 13.21 TFLOPS FP32, are overwhelmed by the pixel count and shader complexity of 4K rendering. The 64 ROPs deliver a pixel rate of 165.2 GPixel/s, which is insufficient to maintain high frame rates at 4K with demanding settings. The transition from 1440p to 4K at High settings shows a drop from 60.4 FPS to 36.9 FPS, a 23.5 FPS decrease that underscores the GPU's resolution scaling limits.

The card's position in the benchmark database, with a 77th percentile ranking among all GPUs, places it above average but not at the top tier. Its average benchmark score of 33721 is 0.7% higher than the AMD Radeon RX 6800 and 1.3% higher than the NVIDIA RTX A5000, indicating that it performs competitively within its class. In Hitman 2, the GPU's 12 GB VRAM is likely a non-issue at 1080p and 1440p, but the compute and memory bandwidth constraints become apparent at 4K, where even Medium settings only produce 48.1 FPS.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i5-12400 provides the computational foundation for this system, and its characteristics are well-suited to Hitman 2's requirements. With 6 cores and 12 threads, the processor leverages its Alder Lake architecture to handle the game's logic, AI, and physics simulation. The base clock of 2.50 GHz and boost clock of 4.40 GHz offer a wide operating range, allowing the CPU to scale its performance based on workload intensity. The 18 MB of shared L3 cache provides fast access to frequently used data, which is beneficial for the game's large, persistent world structure.

Benchmark data shows the CPU's single-thread performance is a key strength. The 3dmark_single_thread score of 910 and passmark_single_thread score of 3456 indicate robust per-core capability, which matters for Hitman 2's main thread. The multi-threaded results, including a cinebench_r23_multicore score of 15935, demonstrate that the processor can also handle parallel workloads when needed. The CPU's 77th percentile ranking among all processors, with an average benchmark score of 19850, places it nearly identical to the Intel Core i7-9700 (0.1% higher) and Intel Core i7-8700 (0.2% higher), showing that it competes well with older mainstream i7 parts.

In the measured FPS data, the CPU's influence becomes more apparent at 1080p. At Low settings, the combo achieves 176.5 FPS, which is likely approaching the CPU's maximum frame delivery capability. The gap between Low and Medium settings at 1080p is 48.1 FPS (from 176.5 to 128.4), while the gap between Medium and High is 32.1 FPS (from 128.4 to 96.3). These diminishing returns suggest that as GPU load increases with higher settings, the CPU has sufficient headroom to avoid becoming a bottleneck. The 65 W TDP and 10 nm process node indicate efficient power delivery, which supports sustained boost clocks during gameplay.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo's rank of 999 out of 1795 tested combinations places it squarely in the middle of the database for Hitman 2. This positioning reflects a balanced pairing that neither excels nor underperforms dramatically. The CPU's 77th percentile and GPU's 77th percentile rankings are consistent, suggesting that this is a well-matched system where neither component is severely mismatched. However, the rank indicates that many other combinations deliver higher frame rates in this specific game, likely due to more powerful GPUs that can handle 4K Ultra settings or higher refresh rate targets.

The rank of 999 is notable because it falls just above the midpoint of 1795, meaning roughly 796 combinations perform worse and 998 perform better. This suggests that while the combo is capable of delivering 60 FPS at 1440p High, it is not optimized for the highest-end experiences that Hitman 2 can offer. The 4K Ultra result of 24.9 FPS is particularly weak, and this likely drags the overall ranking down. The data implies that for users prioritizing high refresh rates or 4K gaming, this combo may require significant settings compromises, whereas for 1080p or 1440p gaming, it offers a solid experience.

Resolution Scaling

The FPS scaling from 1080p to 4K reveals a classic GPU-bound pattern. At High settings, the average FPS drops from 96.3 at 1920x1080 to 60.4 at 2560x1440, then to 36.9 at 3840x2160. This represents a 37.2% decrease from 1080p to 1440p, and a 61.7% decrease from 1080p to 4K. The scaling is not perfectly linear, indicating that the GPU's memory bandwidth and compute resources become increasingly strained at higher pixel counts.

The Low settings preset shows a more dramatic drop: 176.5 FPS at 1080p, 108.7 FPS at 1440p, and 56.9 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 1440p drop is 67.8 FPS (38.4%), while the 1080p to 4K drop is 119.6 FPS (67.8%). This steeper decline at Low settings suggests that the CPU is capable of delivering very high frame rates at 1080p, but the GPU cannot maintain that pace as resolution increases. Conversely, the Ultra preset shows a flatter scaling curve: 74.9 FPS at 1080p, 49.2 FPS at 1440p, and 24.9 FPS at 4K. The 1080p to 4K drop of 50.0 FPS (66.8%) indicates that at maximum settings, the GPU is the clear limiting factor even at 1080p, as the frame rate is already constrained by the graphics workload.

The data suggests that for this combo, the optimal resolution target is 1440p, where the GPU can deliver between 49.2 FPS (Ultra) and 108.7 FPS (Low), providing flexibility for different quality preferences. At 1080p, the system excels at lower settings for high refresh rate displays, but the Ultra preset's 74.9 FPS is still respectable. At 4K, the system is only viable at Low settings for playable frame rates, and even then, it falls short of 60 FPS.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers the following average FPS across settings: Low 176.5, Medium 128.4, High 96.3, Ultra 74.9. The progression shows a consistent 32-48 FPS drop for each step up in quality. The Low to Medium drop is 48.1 FPS, Medium to High is 32.1 FPS, and High to Ultra is 21.4 FPS. This pattern indicates that each settings tier adds meaningful GPU workload, with the largest jump occurring between Low and Medium.

At 2560x1440, the results are: Low 108.7, Medium 81.3, High 60.4, Ultra 49.2. The drops are 27.4 FPS (Low to Medium), 20.9 FPS (Medium to High), and 11.2 FPS (High to Ultra). The smaller absolute drops compared to 1080p reflect the increased pixel load, which compresses the performance range. The High setting manages to just clear 60 FPS, making it the sweet spot for smooth gameplay at this resolution.

At 3840x2160, the results are: Low 56.9, Medium 48.1, High 36.9, Ultra 24.9. The drops are 8.8 FPS (Low to Medium), 11.2 FPS (Medium to High), and 12.0 FPS (High to Ultra). The relative differences are larger in percentage terms, with Ultra being 56.2% slower than Low. None of these settings achieve 60 FPS, and only Low and Medium approach playable territory, with Medium just missing 50 FPS.

Settings Recommendations

For a 60 FPS target, the clear recommendation is 2560x1440 with High settings, which delivers exactly 60.4 FPS. This provides a balance between visual quality and performance, allowing the game's detailed environments to render without sacrificing smoothness. If a higher frame rate is desired, dropping to Medium settings at 1440p yields 81.3 FPS, which is a substantial improvement and still looks significantly better than Low.

For 1080p users, the Ultra preset at 74.9 FPS is the best choice for maximum visual fidelity, as it remains well above the 60 FPS threshold. Those with high refresh rate monitors (144 Hz or higher) should consider Medium settings at 128.4 FPS, which offers a good compromise between quality and speed. Low settings at 176.5 FPS is only recommended for competitive play or when chasing maximum frame rates, as the visual downgrade is substantial.

At 4K, the data suggests that this combo is not ideal for a premium experience. Low settings at 56.9 FPS is the only option that approaches 60 FPS, but the visual compromises are significant. Medium settings at 48.1 FPS may be acceptable for slower-paced stealth gameplay, but High and Ultra are not recommended due to their sub-40 FPS averages. For users with 4K displays, the evidence indicates that a more powerful GPU would be necessary to achieve satisfactory performance, while this combo is better suited to 1440p or 1080p gaming. The overall data supports prioritizing 1440p High as the most balanced configuration, offering a 60 FPS experience with good visual quality.